The invention relates to a jet regulator which can be inserted into the water outlet of a sanitary outlet fitting from the direction of the outlet end side, with it being possible for the jet regulator to be detachably fastened or fixed in the water outlet.
It is already known for a jet regulator which is to form a homogenous, non-sputtering water jet to be mounted on the water outlet of a sanitary outlet fitting. Such jet regulators are usually inserted into an outlet mouthpiece which can be detachably screwed to the water outlet of the sanitary outlet fitting.
Since the configuration of the outlet mouthpiece in designing the surface of the sanitary outlet fitting may involve a considerable amount of expenditure, and since the gap remaining between the outlet mouthpiece and the outlet fitting is often perceived as a problem, jet regulators of the type mentioned in the introduction have already been created which can be inserted into the water outlet of a sanitary outlet fitting from the direction of the outlet end side without an additional outlet mouthpiece being necessary for fastening the jet regulator.
DE-A-31 14 818 has disclosed a jet regulator which can be inserted into the water outlet of a sanitary outlet fitting. To be able to insert the previously disclosed jet regulator into the water outlet of the outlet fitting, a screw head cap which serves as an outlet mouthpiece is provided on the water outlet, which screw head cap can be screwed by means of a peripheral external thread onto an internal thread which is provided on the inner periphery of the adjacent face-end region of the outlet fitting. The jet regulator previously disclosed by DE-A-31 14 818 is provided as an aerated jet regulator which, for the induction of the air which is to be mixed with the water jet, has air admixture openings which are arranged so as to be distributed about the periphery of its jet regulator housing. Here, an encircling annular gap is provided between the jet regulator housing and the adjacent inner wall of the screw head cap which serves as an outlet mouthpiece, via which annular gap the air which is inducted into the water outlet at the end side can enter into the housing interior of the jet regulator via the air admixture openings which are provided in the jet regulator housing. The jet regulator previously disclosed by DE-A-31 14 818 is inserted into the inflow side insertion opening of the outlet mouthpiece which is designed as a screw head cap and which itself can be screwed to the water outlet of the outlet fitting. Here, the jet regulator previously disclosed by DE-A-31 14 818 has an aeration duct which is designed as an annular gap which runs around the jet regulator housing at all sides. Since the jet regulator housing of the previously disclosed jet regulator surrounds an encircling annular gap, the cross section of the emerging water jet is comparatively small in relation to the outer periphery of the water outlet.
WO-A-98/16695 has already disclosed a jet regulator having a jet diffuser device and a jet regulating device which is connected downstream of said jet diffuser device in the flow direction, with the jet regulating device which is provided in the jet regulator housing of the previously disclosed jet regulator having a plurality of pin-like or annular impact bodies which are spaced apart from one another and which are arranged in the flow path transversely with respect to the flow direction. In all of the exemplary embodiments illustrated in WO-A-98/16695, the jet regulator previously disclosed there has an annular flange which is arranged at the inflow side and which projects beyond the periphery of the jet regulator housing, by means of which annular flange the jet regulator housing can be placed onto the annular shoulder provided at the inner periphery of an outlet mouthpiece. On the jet regulator previously disclosed by WO-A-98/16695 is therefore mounted by means of a conventional outlet mouthpiece on the face-end region, which is provided as a water outlet, of a sanitary outlet fitting. Here, in said previously disclosed jet regulator too, an annular gap is provided between the jet regulator housing and the adjacent inner periphery of the outlet mouthpiece in order that the air for admixture can be inducted into the housing interior of the jet regulator housing via the outlet-side face end of the outlet fitting and the air admixture openings which are distributed about the outer periphery of the jet regulator housing. The jet regulator previously disclosed by WO-A-98/16695 therefore also has the disadvantages already mentioned above with regard to the prior art.